MOTT Class Work
A Reading and Writing Project
Overview
The following guidelines apply to the Weekly Writing, which is due 1st and the 15th of each month (or the following Monday, if these dates fall on a weekend). This allows you one week to find and read a text, and another week to write the paper. At least once a month, prepare a presentation that demonstrates what you learned. Construct a graphic organizer (Poster, brochure, flowchart, graphic organizer, skit, handout, PowerPoint, oral report, web page, etc.) representing something you found interesting. Display a summary or clarification of your MOTT interests. Obtain a signature from the person with whom you shared. At midterm, write about your learning from your weekly projects.
The reading and writing is based on your choice information and encourages these goals:
* read a variety of types of text (images, essays, films, articles, poems, stories, science and/or social studies textbooks, and multimedia productions)
* improve your familiarity with how to use resources
* reinforce and extend your knowledge of how to write paragraphs that are focused, organized, and developed using examples and details
* write about a subject of interest to you and your audience that demonstrates your ability to read a variety of texts with insight to make connections to your ideas and your world
* write with an emphasis on clarity and correctness
1. Decide what you will read. You may choose to write about something from your science, social studies, or math textbooks. You may report on outside reading from those classes. You may choose information from the World Wonders site at http://www.sunrae.org/lesson/ww.htm
Follow the Weekly Paper Think Sheet
2. Before you begin reading, skim through the text and jot down some questions about the text you chose, questions that will help you read it better. If you are not sure how to take your reading to the next step, go to < http://www.englishcompanion.com > and scroll down the main page to the list of How-To-Reads in the left-hand margin. See also the Assignment Helps on the right column the http://www.sunrae.org/lesson/wp.htm In other words, what is your purpose for reading?
3. Read the text you choose, which may be an image, a web-based documentary, a painting, a poem, a video, an essay, a sidebar in your textbook, etc. Connect to the text in some way -- what did you learn? how does that relate to you? Use note-taking strategy such as Cornell Notes.
4. Write your ideas. What did you learn about a subject? about yourself? about writing? --Answer questions such as: What did I learn? (in words and graphics) How does this relate to me? How does this help me understand the world? What will I do with this information? See your Think Sheet.
5 Write a one page paper that:
_ if handwritten; uses cursive and uses the paper red line margins (for both left and right margins)
_ if typed; uses 12-point serif font (Geneva, Courier, Comic Sans) and 1.25 inch margins
_ establishes a clear thesis that states your interpretation of the text in your opening paragraph
_ organizes itself into paragraphs, each with a main idea that relates to and builds on your thesis
_ includes examples and details from the text you read to the ideas and connections you made as you read; these examples should maintain the focus, organization, and development of each paragraph
_ gives your paper a title that helps clarify or even extend the idea of your paper. It should not be anything like, "The Weekly Writing Paper."
_ follows the prescribed format of the sample paper:
header,
assignment summary,
text summary,
your connection,
your learning (this could be what you learned about writing, science, social studies, geography, history, math, etc.),
bibliographic citation (see your Write Source 2000, Ginn English, or http://www.liu.edu/cwis/CWP/library/workshop/citmla.htm or
http://citationmachine.net/index.php?new_style=1&reset=1#here
_ shows you know how to properly format titles
Quotation marks for poems, articles, stories, essays, songs
Italics for books, CDs, movies, magazines, newspapers
_ is revised
_ is proofread
Turn in all your questions, notes, drafts. See the rubric for scoring.
Weekly Paper Think Sheet
1. Bibliographic Data for Text: (use Citation Machine at: http://citationmachine.net/index.php?new_style=1&reset=1#here
For MLA format):
2. Before reading: Questions you have about the text (based on the headings, pictures, captions, subheadings, charts, graphs, etc.):
3. Before Reading: What do you hope to learn? What is your purpose for reading?
4. During reading: Take notes and reflect on your purpose: What information do you need to remember? Why is it important?
Take notes on the information you want to learn. How will you take notes. Notes include:
Source
Main idea
Details
Your opinion (what do you think about this?)
Your connection (what else have you seen, heard, read, etc.?)
Your application (how will you use this information?)
Gist Statement (20 word summary statement of all the information read that day)
Reflect on your topic using our reading strategies from class (predict, visualize, connect, question, clarify, evaluate)
5. After reading, consider your notes and gist statements. Reflect:
What did I learn? (in words and graphics)
How does this relate to me?
How does this help me understand the world?
What will I do with this information?
6. Mid Term: After writing three Weekly Papers, write an explanation of what you learned about reading, writing, or thinking. What did you notice about your learning, reading, writing, thinking, or technology?
What did you learn about a subject:
Reading? What did I learn about readers? What did I learn about the text format? What did I learn about thinking like a reader?
Writing? What did I learn about writers? About being an author? About writing for a reader? What did I learn about thinking like a writer?
Science? What did I learn about being a scientist (geologist? Astronomer, meteorologist? Etc.) What did I learn about thinking like a scientist?
Social studies? What did I learn about being a _____________ (geographer? Historian? Biographer? Etc.) What did I learn about thinking like a _____________?
Technology? What did I learn about formatting a document? Using a web page? Choosing accurate and valid sites? Using software? Scheduling computer time?
Sample Weekly Paper and Test
MOTT Main Page
mottclass.pdf
